Chapter 215: Bloodstone
At this moment, the inside of the Gilded Rose carriage was utterly silent...
Hubert was obediently hiding in the corner of the carriage, fiddling again and again with that hand crossbow—a perfect fusion of magic and poison. William Merlin had already finished his day's meditation and was now examining his steady progress with a pleasant mood.
Sometimes, William Merlin really couldn't figure it out—just what kind of brain did his younger cousin have, to hold so much astonishing magical knowledge? Take his current Meditation Codex, for example. Back when they entered the Bone Plane with that group of Fifth Rank Mages, his cousin had handed out three sets: one for those mages, one for Farrow, and one for himself...
At the time, he had been a little reluctant, believing the Merlin Family's Meditation Codex was already among the best in Auckland's many factions. After all, it had been refined by generations of ancestors for over a thousand years, perfectly integrated with the Merlin bloodline. Wouldn't switching codices at the last minute cause problems...?
Looking back now, he realized just how foolish he'd been...
This Meditation Codex was nothing short of miraculous. It was leagues ahead of the Merlin Family's version. In just over a month, his meditation efficiency had more than doubled. And this codex seemed tailored to strengthen fire magic in particular—after a month of practice, the power of his fire spells was far beyond anything he'd ever achieved before...
Sometimes, he couldn't help but feel incredibly lucky...
If those old geezers on the family council hadn't sent him off to Seaview City, would he ever have had such an opportunity?
Back then, among all the young Merlin Family members, he barely scraped into the top ten. Ahead of him were plenty of even more outstanding talents—like Leon Merlin, who had reached the Archmage realm at a young age, or Aubrey Merlin, who'd already joined the family council. Compared to them, he was nothing special.
But just look at me now.
Now, in Seaview City, I'm truly thriving. My mercenary corps includes fifty Archmages at my command, and my own strength has skyrocketed—from a Fifth Rank Archmage to an Eighth Rank Archmage, facing almost no obstacles along the way. My speed has even surpassed any genius in the Merlin Family. William Merlin is convinced that, at this jaw-dropping pace, he'll soon break into the ranks of Magi. When he returns to the Merlin Family, who knows what kind of looks he'll get...
Thinking of this, William Merlin glanced at Leon Merlin, who was meditating. His gaze was complicated—fear, confusion, even a touch of admiration. William knew that everything he had now was thanks to his cousin. This cousin was destined to shake the entire Northend World. Sooner or later, William would be following him, standing atop the world...
"Finished meditating?" As soon as Leon Merlin opened his eyes, he saw William Merlin looking at him.
Mm, I'm done.
How do you feel?
I feel great, really great..." Mentioning this Meditation Codex, William Merlin grew excited. "I think in two months at most, I'll be able to reach the Ninth Rank Archmage."
Heh, if you still can't become a Ninth Rank Archmage in two months, I'd start to doubt your talent..." Leon Merlin smiled calmly, clearly unfazed by the progress.
William Merlin was personally chosen by Leon Merlin as the leader of the mercenary corps. If his personal strength wasn't enough, how could he command respect? That's why, before entering the Bone Plane, Leon personally selected a Meditation Codex for William—this was no ordinary method.
At the gathering of the Hand of Arcana, three sets of Meditation Codexes, each with eight formulas, earned Leon Merlin a territory, a relic, and sixty Soul Mana Crystals.
But the Meditation Codex Leon gave William Merlin contained an astonishing ten formulas!
This Meditation Codex is called Bloodstone. In the current era of Northend World, it absolutely ranks among the top-tier meditation methods. If William Merlin had the strength and opportunity, he could use Bloodstone to establish a mage faction rivaling Cloudspire Tower or the Black Tower.
However, William Merlin's understanding of Bloodstone is still far from complete...
So far, William Merlin has only improved his meditation efficiency and fire spell power, but Bloodstone is much more than that. It was the core Meditation Codex of the Crimson Spire at the height of the Third Dynasty. After the Spire's destruction, Bloodstone was lost for millennia, until a Title Archmage unearthed the ruins and discovered this ten-formula codex.
Of course, there's no need to tell William Merlin any of this.
Once William Merlin gains deeper understanding of Bloodstone, he'll naturally discover its true power...
Leon now needed to focus more attention on Hubert...
Now, the Dragonblood Beastman hiding in the corner of the carriage looked timid and shifty-eyed, but Leon knew that Hubert, with his dragon and beastman bloodline, had limitless potential. True magic and martial dual cultivation—imagine a Sword Saint with immense combat power, plus innate dragon magic. In battle, he'd be a terrifying monster.
Besides, with Hubert having signed a strict contract, he's essentially Leon's personal property—loyalty is not a concern.
With such great conditions, not putting them to good use would be a real waste...
Hubert, come here.
"Huh?" The Dragonblood Beastman, still fiddling with his hand crossbow, visibly flinched when he heard Leon's voice...
Although Leon had just given him a True Spirit magical item, in the Dragonblood Beastman's mind, Leon was still the evil human mage. It couldn't be helped—Saioetus's lesson had left a deep mark on Hubert. Even now, he often woke from nightmares, first thing looking around to see if that terrifying flame was lurking somewhere...
Of course, having been taught a lesson by Saioetus once, Hubert definitely didn't have the guts to defy Leon. Even though he feared this evil human mage, he still shuffled over when called...
Take this..." Leon rummaged in his pocket and pulled out a silver necklace, tossing it to the hesitant Hubert.
Thank you, Master Merlin..." Hubert took it and was instantly disappointed. He muttered a half-hearted thanks, secretly thinking: this evil human mage sure had become stingy. He called me over just to give me a silver necklace? Look at this pendant—probably a magic crystal, but so shabby, not even as big as a thumb...
From today on, you must wear this necklace at all times. If I ever find it missing, I'm sure Saioetus would be delighted to have a chat with you...
Y-yes, yes..." Hubert's legs went weak at the mention of Saioetus. He didn't need any further prompting, hurriedly putting the necklace around his neck, though he couldn't help but grumble inwardly: with such a shabby necklace, would the other beastmen in the Highland tribe laugh at me?
Luckily, Leon didn't know what Hubert was thinking, or he'd have been so angry he'd cough up blood on the spot.
That's right, the necklace itself wasn't anything special—Leon had Saioetus melt a silver ingot and craft it in just a few minutes.
But the pendant on the necklace...
That magic crystal, which Hubert found so shabby, was actually priceless.
It was a Soul Mana Crystal!
At the Hand of Arcana gathering, Leon traded his last Meditation Codex for sixty Soul Mana Crystals. Even Morg, who owned all of Howling Isle, couldn't deliver that many at once. Morg handed over three on the spot; the rest would be delivered in installments over a year.
After the gathering, Lord Sean threw a fit—crying, threatening, and swearing loyalty to Leon—until Leon finally handed over one of the crystals.
Now, Hubert was getting the second one...
In fact, this unassuming silver necklace would be worth a fortune on the market—enough to scare Hubert senseless.
But there's no helping it—Dragonblood Beastmen inherit their magic from dragons. They don't accumulate mana through meditation; it flows in their blood. Eating, sleeping, fighting—all are ways to build up mana. Their magic grows with age, but to speed up the process, the only way is to absorb mana from magic crystals...
And the stronger the magic crystal, the faster the mana grows...
That's why Leon gritted his teeth and handed over the second Soul Mana Crystal.
Leon was sure that once Hubert had the Soul Mana Crystal, it wouldn't be long before he gained his first magical rune and truly became a spellcasting Dragonblood Beastman.
As for martial arts, Leon didn't need to worry—Dragonblood Beastmen never needed advanced techniques. Their fighting relied on instinct and raw power. Many legendary Dragonblood Beastmen in Northend World reached Sword Saint level just by eating, sleeping, and muddling through life.